Stop it Already!

For the greater Seattle area, Microsoft is perhaps the most important employer with almost 35,000 direct jobs, even with the recent layoffs. Taking into consideration the usual ripple effect, we can easily add another 100,000 jobs indirectly supported by Microsoft.

These would include contracting firms, service providers, educational positions and so on. A Bellevue Reporter article discusses how MS uses up almost 100,000 hotel rooms in Bellevue alone. The Redmond Ridge QFC? It probably exists only because of the dozens of Microsoft employees living up there.

Boeing is contracting rapidly, but MS has barely shed 5,000 jobs. At the same time, it is also hiring for 2,000 positions. Read on »